Barcelona (AFP)
A clasico under close surveillance: in a burning political context, the most followed football match in the world between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid, this Wednesday at 8:00 p.m., will transform the grounds of Camp Nou into a fortress.
Patrols, extensive searches, a safety cordon ... All precautions are taken so that this poster for the first place of the Spanish championship is held without a hitch ... despite the heavy political and popular context.
Targeted by independence demonstrations, the meeting, originally scheduled for October 26 in Barcelona, had to be postponed for "exceptional reasons" according to the Spanish football federation (RFEF), due to incessant mobilizations and violent clashes in Catalonia.
Two months later, the clasico remains threatened, with several rallies expected around the boiling Camp Nou and its almost 100,000 places, and the fear of a possible cancellation of the meeting.
"Even today, let’s show that #laforcedupeuple is unstoppable. Starting at 4 p.m. at Camp Nou," tweeted the mysterious pro-independence democratic Tsunami platform on Wednesday morning, demanding "the strictest nonviolence".
A tide of black inflatable balloons should notably invade Camp Nou on the initiative of the separatists, who intend to denounce the black rubber bullets launched by the police to suppress their demonstrations.
- "A simple football match" -
To counter the "massive concentration" called by this platform, the police have planned a heavy device, with more than 3,000 security agents deployed around Camp Nou, including a thousand police officers.
Police will guarantee "the match, fan access and security inside and outside the stadium," local officials said in a press conference on Friday.
From this Wednesday morning, agents will patrol around the enclosure, so that the teams, the referees and the supporters can enter without problem and attend this match judged to be "high risks" by the police.
Further checks and searches will be carried out at various entrances, and a cord will be put in place to prevent demonstrators from reaching the stadium doors.
"It's a simple football match," attempted Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane on Tuesday. "There is a lot going on around, but in the end what people want to see is a good football game."
Same call for calm for his Barça counterpart, Ernesto Valverde: "People will be able to attend the match freely. That's all we ask: that there is respect for everyone", a- he wished Tuesday evening.
- A clasico with a French accent -
With a global audience estimated at more than 650 million viewers according to La Liga, the whole world will have their eyes riveted on this clasico - including the Spanish coach Luis Enrique, who will attend the poster of his former team against Real - -, while the two teams are tied with 35 points each at the top of the Spanish championship.
"More than a classic", "More than a match", the Catalan sports daily Mundo Deportivo and L'Equipe, in France, agreed. "It's a simple football match, but it's the best match in the world," said Marca, the most widely read sports daily in Spain.
Despite the absence of Eden Hazard, James Rodriguez (Madrid) or Ousmane Dembélé (Barcelona) for example, some of the biggest stars in the football world will be on the pitch on Wednesday evening.
With at the head of the procession, the highly anticipated duel between the two best current scorers of the Spanish championship (12 achievements), the Argentinian Lionel Messi, crowned with a sixth Ballon d'Or on December 2, and the French center-forward Karim Benzema, who walks in the footsteps of the legend Raul at Real Madrid.
A Clasico with a marked French accent, potentially with the presence of Zidane, Benzema, Raphäel Varane and Ferland Mendy on the Madrid side, and that of Clément Lenglet, Samuel Umtiti and Antoine Griezmann on the Catalan side.
The latter, back in form with two goals in the last two days of Liga, is used to games against the great Real Madrid when he played at Real Sociedad (2009-2014) or Atlético Madrid (2014-2019) . But he will experience his first classic under his new "blaugrana" colors with Barça, which he decided to join last summer.
"An incredible day, very important" for him, said the French world champion.
Feverish on the field, in the stands and outside the stadium, this clasico between the two Spanish giants and rivals will have repercussions that go beyond the simple framework of football.
© 2019 AFP